The Spanish colonial flavor is particularly piquant in the old city of Puebla, 125km (77mi) east of Mexico City. Despite the ravages of the 1999 earthquake, Puebla is home to more than 70 churches and a thousand other colonial buildings, many of them adorned with the city's famous hand-painted  tiles (azulejos). The town's towering cathedral is considered one of the country's best proportioned, blending severe Herreresque-Renaissance and early baroque styles.

As it is built on a plain, the three  great volcanoes, Pico de Orizaba, Popocatápetl and Iztaccihuatl as well as the  smaller La Malinche volcano, are all visible from whatever direction you  approach the city. Its brick, mortar and tile buildings give Puebla a special polychromy, enriched by its numerous churches with walls and vaults covered with golden plasterwork decoration. The beauty of its houses and streets make Puebla  a feast of light and color. Puebla's illustrious past is reflected in the  present-day character of this distinguished city

Local indigenous influences can be seen in the prolific  stucco decoration of the Capilla del Rosario in the Templo de Santo  Domingo - a sumptuous baroque proliferation of gilded plaster and carved  stone with angels and cherubim popping out from behind every leaf. Puebla is  also known for its regional cuisine, celebrated and imitated throughout Mexico; try the mole poblano, spicy chocolate sauce usually served over turkey or  chicken.

While you are in Puebla, don't miss to visit Cholula, located 8km southwest of Puebla. It is one of the most holy places in Mexico. Today Cholula has , so they say, a church for every day of the year! The great pyramid of Cholula, left from prehispanic times, is slowly being excavated and restored and is known as one of the major archeological wonder of our times. The frescoes are some of the most famous in Mexico, and date back to the Classic period. Hidden tunnels and the frescoes are deep within the pyramid.